Police arrest Medford man in sex crime case

A Medford man was in jail Friday facing numerous sex crime charges after allegedly trying to lure a local 15-year-old girl into a sexual relationship through social media, police said.

By RYAN PFEIL

A Medford man was in jail Friday facing numerous sex crime charges after allegedly trying to lure a local 15-year-old girl into a sexual relationship through social media, police said.

Louis Medcalf, 50, was being held on three charges each of first- and second-degree online sexual corruption of a child and luring a minor, and one charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. As of Friday afternoon, he was lodged in the Jackson County Jail on $140,000 bail.

Investigators believe Medcalf tried to lure the girl into a relationship using various social media websites and through text messages, the Jackson County Sheriff's Department said in a news release.

The investigation into his reported activity started in December after the Department of Human Services contacted police about the exchanges between Medcalf and the girl.

The correspondence lasted several months, police said.

"It looks like there were multiple messages that were sent back and forth," Jackson County sheriff's spokeswoman Andrea Carlson said. "As the relationship grew, it went to text messages."

Police served a search warrant at Medcalf's home in the 900 block of South Oakdale Street, Medford, Thursday and found evidence connecting him to the online luring of the minor, Carlson said.

She declined to release specifics on what was found because investigators suspect Medcalf might have contacted other minors using similar methods.

"Based on how Medcalf was communicating, there are other victims out there," Carlson said.

She said detectives will use the evidence to corroborate stories of other potential victims they haven't interviewed yet.

"We're being really careful with the information we're releasing at this point," Carlson said.

Anyone with additional information about the case is urged to call the Jackson County Sheriff's Department tip line at 541-774-8333.

Reach reporter Ryan Pfeil at 541-776-4468 or by email at rpfeil@mailtribune.com.